Pioneer Park Days in Zolfo Springs, FL

Every year since we have been wintering at Peace River TT's, we have heard people talk about Pioneer Park Days at the park across the street.  And every year we have somehow missed getting over there to check it out.  So we made sure to do it this year.

So what is this event, that has been happening here for 43 years?  Well, it is part flea market and part celebration of pioneer living.  There are many demonstrations that show how the pioneers lived such as dutch oven cooking, basket weaving and other 1800's activities.  Then there are rows and rows of stuff.  Stuff to browse and stuff to buy.

 Then there are tractors, tractors and more tractors.  Real ones and toy ones.  Over 400 exhibits of them.

Lots of cool cars.

Lots of hit and miss steam engines which I find fascinating.

Really cool RV's.

Opinions.

Yummy food.

And fun!

We had a great time here and now we know that it is something we will be sure to want to visit each time we are here!

Hog Heaven~Bike Week in Myrtle Beach

When Austin was about three years old, he was obsessed with Harley's.  He could tell if there was a Harley around long before he could even see them.  Meaning, he knew one by the sound alone.  We'd be driving on the interstate and hear the roar of a bike coming up behind us and he'd shout out, That's a Harley!  And he was always correct in his guess.  I was, and still am, so impressed by that.  The boy has good taste.

Imagine our surprise to land in Myrtle Beach and realize we coordinated our trip with Bike Week/Harley Davidson Bike Week.  This has added such a fun dimension to our visit here.  They are in the campground we are staying at.  They are at the places we stop to visit.  And they are on the road whenever we drive.

 

There is a Harley Davidson dealership right up the road, and each day we've passed by there are tons of bikes there to drool over.

We are in Hog Heaven!  Can I show you my favorite?

 

I had no idea they made pink helmets.  That is gonna be me someday, mark my words!

Living the life where we dream to be bikers in NC!

Summerfest and The British Invasion

Since the extent of our fun this past few weeks has been along the lines of Trivial Pursuit and the library, we were very excited to visit St. Mary's Summerfest today.  Not only did it get us out of the RV, but we also got to see a Beatles band, The British Invasion.  The Beatles pro of the family said they were "ok".  The rest of us thought they were great.

Speaking of libraries and the Beatles fan in our family, this week when we went to check out our goodies the librarian complimented our choices in movies.  "Thinking movies" is what she called them.  I giggled because they were mostly Beatles movies and due to the Beatles love that Austin has.  When we got home and watched them, I saw she was absolutely right-they were thinking movies.  Once again my kid taught me something about life that I might not have ever known otherwise.

Back to our fun at the Summerfest, it was very crowded there but we still found a table to sit and eat our corndogs and elephant ears at.  I wish I'd have thought to take pictures of the festival, because it was a really nice one.  I love small town fairs and festivals and how the locals all show up to attend them.  It's nice to see that things like this are still loved in our country.  And we always get a great feel for the area while we are sitting there and soaking it all up.  It's one of the reasons we wanted to travel, so it's great when we do get to experience it.

Living the life in Ohio!

Ray Bethell~Good Stuff in Person

We loved each part of the kite festival that we saw and yet, it's hard to compare any other part to this:
Cool huh? That's what I thought to begin with. I'm standing there, from a distance, and can see three kites moving together. Cool. The guy next to me asks if I've been down to the sand yet and when I say no he goes on to tell me a bit about who is flying the kites. He is one of two people in the world that flies three kites at the same time. He tells me to go up close and watch the guy fly-that it is something I'll never forget. Since I always love it when the locals clue us in to the good stuff, I listen to him. And when we get up close I see this:Not quite what I expected. I'm not sure what I expected, but it wasn't this. So we watch him for a bit, and within minutes I realize this is going to stick with me for a lifetime.I realize that this, like great music, art, books or movies will bury itself deep down inside of me and change me. At the risk of sounding like a lunatic to those who have not experienced this in person, it moved me to tears. It was that beautiful, poetic and stunning.I look over to my right and see a grown man grinning like a fool in love and he gushes to me, "It is really something, isn't it?" I nod because I can't find words due to the huge lump in my throat. "He's an artist!", he adds. I nod again.
If you have a chance to see this in person, do it. It is so beyond cool, I have no words to fully describe it. Really. If this was the only thing we saw after driving cross country, it would have been worth every mile. It was an honor to be a part of his audience.

Find out more about this incredible man here: Ray Bethell Good Stuff


Living the life in Oregon!

International Kite Festival in Long Beach, WA

Today we saw one of the neatest things we've been able to see so far. The international kite festival that is in Long Beach, WA. This is such a magical place. Everywhere you turn you see things so delightfully fun and incredible.The colors are so bright and vibrant and the variety of kites is mind boggling.It was like Disney; this was one of the happiest places on earth.Just walking around and seeing all of this beauty in the sky, is a phenomenal thing to experience.We had a wonderful day and are putting this down as a fave of ours. A special round of applause please for the boy, who went out and boldly flew his kite alongside the greats today and had a blast doing so! He rocks!

Fiesta San Antonio

After we visited the Riverwalk, we headed back over to the Alamo Plaza where they were kicking off San Antonio's huge yearly event, Fiesta San Antonio. Fiesta began in 1891 as a way to honor the memory of the heroes of the Alamo and the battle of San Jacinto. It has since grown into a Texas sized fiesta that draws 3.5 million visitors, of which 20 percent travel from out of state and from other countries.We attended the Fiesta Fiesta at the Alamo. We picked up a few medals that people collect and trade.Then we headed over to hear the 82nd Airborne All American chorus perform. It was deeply moving to hear these men sing "Proud to be an American" with the Alamo as their backdrop.Viva Fiesta! Living the life in Texas!

Florida Flywheelers

Today we visited the Florida Flywheelers in Ft. Meade, FL. Austin and I went last year with a group from the Peace River campground but this was Nathan and Auburn's first time there. Isn't the sky gorgeous? So what exactly is this unique event? It is lots of neat antiques and cool classic cars:

This was one such a beauty!An entire antique village:A 2 story outhouse-I get the top!A house made out of a Redwood log:

and tons and tons of tractors. Joshua would never want to leave this John Deere heaven!Let's see...what else do they have? There is also music, good food and a whole flea market type swap meet with rows and rows of goodies. Plenty to keep you busy and lots of friendly people to keep you entertained. Very fun!